I lean in this direction. I think it comes down to the development of any two players from DeLaurier, Bolden, O'Connell, Baker, or Jones.
If two of those guys play above expectations, Duke will be there competing for a title in late March/early April.
And I won't lie. That's what bothers me. K has always been great at stashing away a no name and then the guy ends up a great college junior / senior and makes a small name for himself.
Guys like Delaurier are scary because they won't demand the ball but will come with a very disciplined approach.
This is why I dont know why K must adapt to others. He is great at adapting, as the media relentlessly claims, but it's not something that he should be proud of. He's a Cal, Pitino, Jimmy V knockoff and now he's changing when he actually had the best system to produce titles after copying all of those men. Add the selfish aspect, he was ready to win many titles. Had he stayed a traditional route he would have probably won 7 by now.
But he had to chase Cal down the NBA hole, and its probably because he never coached there. He might have 5 rings, but he knows that's because he stayed at one school for 50 years. Cal, Pitino, even Stevens, all went for the highest level of competition. It's why you can't just look at titles with coaches, their paths lead to different places.
That's why K is not and was never seen as the better coach between himself and Pitino (until the Louisville pitino ended). Because he wasn't
Hopefully K chasing Cal this time will cost him. Nothing would make me happier than to see him choke away the end, when competition has weakened, and Cal has that same weak field to himself for the next 10 years. I think this is what worries K more than anything. Cal is a huge threat to his historical position when hes done. If you allow Cal to stock the NBA with all of the stars, and then win 3 or 4 titles in 18 years directly after K's run, it diminishes what he did forever.
And these guys care about it.